Unexpected Fantasy
by JapanT'sTheName
Summary: While on a train ride to visit his aunt, 16 year-old Ryo gets an unexpected (and cute) little guest. And his new friend seems to have an interest in Ryo's fantasy book... Maybe you'd like to read along and find out what happens in his story? [some OC's involved, adventurous and fantasy!]
1. Unexpected Guest

**Hello again! Yes, I have started another story. (DUN DUN DUN) But that does NOT mean I am giving up on the other one! What I'll most likely end up doing is finishing the other one and THEN updating this one, but for now I'll just do what I can. This one isn't as sad or hurt/comfort, it's just something I thought it would be cute. :3 I'll also be doing it in Ryo's point of view (because I have discovered I do a MUCH better job at writing fanfictions if I'm doing it in someone else's point of view than either third person or my own POV) Once again, I have the general idea for the plot but no clue how to form it. (I never said I was good at coming up with ideas okay? -w- ) **

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh! or any of its characters! Some OC's are involved!**_

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**Ryo's POV**

I had always imagined train rides being calm and peaceful. I imagined them being a place where you read or take a short nap before you reached your destination, maybe get a quick snack.

But, oh, no, the train I was on was _nothing _like that. I sat in the very back of the fourth cart, the cart where all the children and elderly were in. The children varied in ages, including myself (I at age 16), but no matter how little they were, or how much attention their parents were paying to them, all the children could do was make noise. And I mean A LOT of noise. I was slightly glad that I had brought my book along, but with all the noise on the cart I could hardly concentrate.

I wished I was on one of the nicer carts, but my father simply couldn't afford it. I mean, we weren't rich, and we barely had enough money for my train ticket to be on a decent cart. That was actually why I was on the train to go with my aunt and my uncle, because my father had told me that we were "running a bit short on funds." At least, that's what he told me… I knew he meant he didn't have the time or the money to take care of me, so he was sending me off so I could become my Aunt Helena's problem. But my father still cared for me… Or… I hoped he did…

I pushed the thought away immediately; shaking my head and going right back to my book. I laughed softly at my absurd thought. Of course my father cared for me! I don't see why he wouldn't… But then again, after my mother and my sister, Amane, had passed away, he was always out of the house and never around…

The more and more I kept thinking about it, the sick feeling in my stomach continued to get worse. I took a deep breath, closing my eyes for an instance in order to relax. But I should've known that couldn't be accomplished when you had a train of rambunctious children. "Mister!" A small voice yelled at me and I squeaked, quickly opening my eyes to discover a little boy sitting in front of me. He had short, shaggy blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes. He looked to be around the age of six, and he was missing one of his teeth, which was visible when he smiled. "Hi!" He said cheerily, giggling and waving his little hand in front of my face, only a few centimeters away from my nose. "U-Um… Hello…" I responded with a shy smile and a small wave. He bounced happily the seat like an excited little puppy, smiling broadly. "I'm Cody! What's your name?" he said with a cute little tone. I smiled and fixed my jacket, then closed my book and set it on my lap.

"I'm Ryo. Ryo Bakura, to be exact." I reached over and hesitantly ruffled his hair, which he responded to with another giggle. "I don't have a last name!" He said with a delightful squeal. But I looked at him with confusion. "Uh… You… Don't?..." I raised a brow in suspicion. "Nope! I don't have a mommy or a daddy, or a last name!" He swung his feet around since he was too short for his feet to the touch the floor. My eyes widened and I almost grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him, but I held back. "Y-You don't have any parents?! Wha- so you're all on your own?!" My eyes seemed to be widening more, but the little boy (or I should say, Cody) merely nodded his head.

"Yeah! This nice lady gave me some money, so I used some of it to buy a ticket to anywhere. I still have some left over for food." He smiled sweetly and held up his extra money, which made me relax a little on the inside knowing he could get something to eat.

So a young orphaned boy gets on the train to go wherever he can and absolutely no one questions it?

I was compelled to keep him, but at the same time I knew it would be hard. If I could barely take care of myself at the moment, how was I supposed to take care of a small, and may I add, orphaned child? It would be much easier if he had parents, then I could try to find them…

"Mister?" that cute little voice brought me out of my thoughts. I glanced down at him, only to find he actually wasn't in front of me anymore. I blinked, wondering if I had just been imagining him the whole time and I had started hearing voices in my head. "Mister!" I turned to see him now next to me, tugging on the sleeve of my jacket. "Uhhh… Yes, Cody?" I looked down at him as he reached over and tapped on my book. "What book are you reading?" He smiled, lifting my arm up with both his hands and crawling up under it. I watched him for a few seconds before realizing he had asked me a question, which I then answered. "Oh, it's a book my mother got me when I was very little." I smiled, instinctively pulling him closer and then opening the book. It didn't have any pictures, which I was very unhappy about when I was younger, but I soon learned to like the book without the picture. I always said it lets the story be more varied since it lets your imagination come up with the pictures. "Can you read it to me?" he looked up at me with his big blue eyes and I could feel myself beginning to melt. (I had always had a weakness for cute things). "Of course I can, little one." I said as I opened up the book to the first page. I could hear him shifting excitedly under my arm.

I cleared my throat and smiled, looking at the first sentence at the top of the page. "Once upon a time…"

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**So what do you guys think? Like I mentioned before, I will probably try to finish up my other story before adding to this one, but I will get things down! and I really need to make my chapters longer... well anyways, later! -JapanT'sTheName**


	2. Merely A Commoner

**I LIED. I KNOW I said I would update the other one first but I finished this one first! But I am legitimately working on the other one as I speak. I assure you. :) This one is more towards fantasy and just adventurous more than anything else, I'll try to get some romance in there, anything sad will most likely have a happy ending because I do not like sad endings they make my feels go all over the place and that is a NO. But any who, if I do anything confusing feel free to ask for me to clear things up because I know I tend to do that, I'll try my best not to turn this super confusing. **

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh! or any of its characters, this is simply for fun. Enjoy!**_

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"_Once upon a time, there lived a poor peasant boy in a small village. He was an only child and lived with his mother. The boy had always dreamed of living in the palace with the royals, but he knew that he was only a commoner. He had a very kind heart and was a good person, but sadly no one paid much attention to him. One day his mother became very ill, but he did not have enough money to pay for the medication. So his only choice was to go out to the market and sell his mother's golden locket, which had been passed down through his family…."_

**Ryo's POV**

I never imagined it would come to this.

I felt like my heart was being ripped into shreds as I stood next to my mother's bed, watching her cough grow more and more intense. In fact, it was so intense it was making her entire body tremble and her face contort into an expression of pure pain and agony. But in the end, there was nothing I could do but watch and wait until the coughing quieted down enough for me to talk. "Are you feeling any better, mom?" I asked worriedly, but I already knew the answer.

"J-Just a little better…" She replied with a weak smile. Her voice was hoarse and barely audible, which made me worry even more. I sighed, walking over to the small nightstand on the right side of her bed and picking up a small bowl of soup. I helped her sit up and set the bowl on her lap, gently setting the spoon on her hand. As I did so, I compared my hand to hers. She wasn't old, no, my mother was only 31, but yet her hand appeared to be so… brittle and weak. And not just her hand, her whole body seemed to be like that too. She was abnormally thin, and her long, silver hair which used to shine in the sunlight was now dull and no longer smooth. I could tell her condition was worsening. I could tell in her weak, light green eyes.

I never, _ever_ imagined it would come to this.

I watched as she ate her soup, and the fact that she hadn't had another cough attack gave me a small sense of hope that she would get better, but the nagging feeling in the back of my mind wouldn't let me stop worrying. And the worst part? I had to take care of her _and _myself, all at once.

My father had disappeared when I was 6, and my mother hadn't told me why. The entire subject of my father was always avoided, even forgotten, you could say. Sometimes I wished he was around, then maybe I wouldn't feel so helpless when it came to aiding my mother's health… But if he hadn't come back in 10 years, I doubt he would be coming back now. So it was just me, myself, and I (and my mother, of course.)

After she had finished the soup, I took the bowl and the spoon and set it back onto the nightstand. I helped her lay back down and she looked up at me with her weak smile. "Ryo…" she said softly, gently taking one of my hands and setting something in my palm, then closed it again. I felt something small in my hand; it was smooth and also cold against my skin. "I want you to take this to the market… buy anything that you need, sweetheart." She started to cough again as I opened my palm to discover she had placed her golden locket in my hand.

My eyes widened when I saw the heart shaped trinket in my hand. "Mom! I-I can't sell this!" I stammered, feeling my already conflicted heart crack even more. I remembered when I was little she had told me how her mother had given her the locket, and how the locket had been passed down even before my mom had received it. And now I was standing here and she was telling me to sell it?!

"Ryo, it's alright…" she answered calmly as she was beginning to doze off. I wanted to protest, but I realized she was already asleep. I looked back down at the locket and bit my lower lip, arguing with myself whether I should sell it or not. I could sell the locket in exchange for some medication, and then I would really be helping my mom, but on the other hand, I'd be selling a family memento. Taking in a deep breath of air, I held the locket tightly in my hand and began to make my way out of the house and to the market.

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The market was a busy, filthy, shady, convenient place. Good and bad, handy and unneeded all at the same time. There was a better, more efficient market up near the palace, but there was no way on earth I could afford anything from there, even with my mother's golden locket. So I was stuck with shopping at the commoners' market. There were people from all over the place, people with several different styles, and not to mention people of all different ages. It ranged from 3 and 6 years old running around through the crowd to 80 and 90 year old seniors sitting at their post and waiting to sell something. Among them were also 20-30 year old men and women that looked like they either could sell stuffed toys to children or rip the heads off of the kids instead. I hated the market, but I was stuck with it.

I felt like I was among the most vulnerable people in the market because I was still I child, but I was mature enough to take care of myself, and not to mention the fact that even though I was 16, I had the strength of a 5 year old. Besides, I wasn't the violent type. I preferred to talk to my opponent rather than beat them to death, and even then I tried to avoid having opponents in the first place. Every time I came to the market I always prayed I wouldn't get kidnapped by some creep and have to live the rest of my life as a slave… It was one of the main reasons I despised this place, the fear. The fear of something horrible happening to me and the fear that I might not be even be able to make it back to my mother **alive**. _'Happy thoughts…' _I told myself, '_think of happy thoughts…'_

I continued to make my way through the crowd, softly saying "excuse me" to the people I walked by. I remembered my mother taking me to the medic one time when I had a cold. He was an elderly man, maybe around the age of 70, with wispy white and gray hair and a matching beard. He had beady dark brown eyes that had always made me question his credibility as a doctor, and he wore wide oval glasses that made them pop out even more. It made me shudder just by thinking of them, but I had to pull through just long enough to get the medicine for my mother.

Unlike everyone else in the market, he resided inside an old shed while the rest of the benders had tables set out under large canopies of sheets that they used for shade. I walked up to the small shed, trying to ignore the people around me as they watched me. Not a lot of people went to the medic, mainly because they all had their own home remedies, but I had no other choice. I gulped and clenched my fist nervously around the locket, slowly opening the door of the shed and stepping inside.

The inside of the shed was dark with only a few candles illuminating the room and the shelves were filled with bottles of different colored liquids. "Who's there? What do you want?" An old raspy voice came out from the corner of the shed and made me jump. "Ah!" I squeaked before realizing that it was only the medic talking to me. "U-um…" my voice quivered as I eyed around to try and find the source of the voice. "I came to get some medicine for my mother, sir…"

"Medicine?" he repeated loudly. "Yes…" I responded shyly. I heard some shuffling near the back and then saw the old man step towards me. He was frowning, the wrinkles on his face were furrowed even more due to the fact he was putting on an expression of annoyance. I expected him to have some sort of bottle or a pill, but instead he was holding a rolled up piece of paper. "Here," he said with a grumble, "this will show you the way to the Magia flower. Bring this to me and I'll get you your medicine." I stared at him in confusion for a few minutes before opening my mouth to speak again, but the senior cut me off before I could continue. "I know what you're going to say, and no, none of my medicine here will help. My medicine merely slows down the illness, giving people a few years before they get sick again. With this flower, you can cure your mother for good."

My eyes widened at his words. It was almost as he had read my mind… No, that's impossible, he couldn't have. "Are you sure?... I don't quite believe this…" I said doubtfully. The old man, on the other hand, was not happy with my skeptical idea, and smacked me right on the side of the head with his cane. "Of course I'm sure foolish boy!" He grunted while I winced. "Alright! Alright!" I said in order to avoid another hit. Those beady dark eyes narrowed in my direction and I could feel myself getting uncomfortable under his cold stare. "I gave you the map, now give me locket." The old man said coolly after several uncomfortable minutes of silence.

I glanced down at the locket in my hand; the smooth, golden surface glistened as the light of candle hit the shiny heart. I was compelled to keep the locket and just head back home. I couldn't just sell my mother's locket for some mystical flower that possibly doesn't exist! Then again, this flower _could _exist and it might just be able to save her life…

With a loud sigh, I extended my hand out to the old man and dropped the golden trinket in his hand. I watched as he examined it with those beady eyes of his, then grunted with a small nod. "Good condition. Now get out!" He frowned once again and smacked the other side of my head with his accursed cane. I squeaked and then gripped the paper tightly in my hand as I ran out of the shed. My mind was racing and my heart was pumping so fast I thought it might just burst. Had I just really traded my mother's locket for a map that supposedly led to a magical flower?

Yes.

Why?

I didn't have the slightest clue.

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**So what do you guys think? I hope you all enjoyed it and I'll try to update soon! I will also try to the other story as well! **


	3. Feline Friend

**Chapter 3~! Okay, so I'm going to clear some things out before hand to avoid confusion. **

**Ryo – the hikari**

**Bakura – the yami, NOT the past self. He's the spirit of the millennium ring that kinda looks like Ryo. **

**King Thief – The past self. I understand some people call him 'Akefia' or 'Bakura' (since technically he is Bakura) but I'm just going to call him 'King Thief'. **

**Marik – the fun loving hikari**

**Melvin – yami Marik. I like the abridged version of him, so I'm sticking with it!**

**Yami – yami yugi, not Atem! **

**I think that's it for now… **

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh! or any of its characters! Thank you for reading and enjoy!**_

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"_So the boy went out on a journey to find the Magia flower. The map told him to head through the forest, but little did he know that he would find some help along the way…"_

**Ryo's POV**

My mother was still sleeping when I returned from the medic, but I didn't feel like waking her up. She needed the rest, and I only hoped that maybe resting would help her feel a little better. I packed some things I thought might help along the way, like a compass, a canteen full of water, the map, of course, and some extra food. I wrote a note explaining to my mother that I would be gone for some time and I wouldn't know when I would be back. I set the note on the nightstand next to her glass of water and smiled slightly. I didn't know how long I'd be gone, or if I would even make it back. The best I could do was hope…

Before I knew it, I was already heading out the door. I took the map out of my backpack and unfolded it, seeing where I was supposed to be headed. There was a little cottage with the name of our village next to it, so I presumed that was the starting point. A red line was drawn from the cottage and to the small picture of some trees. I nodded and followed the instructions of the map, heading right towards the forest that separated our kingdom from, well, everyone and everything else. I stopped right at the entrance to look at the map. "Go through it…" I told myself quietly. But after looking back up at the now dark and ominous looking forest, I was starting to regret this entire trip.

Yet I knew I had to do it. It wasn't for me; it was for my mother who was holding on to everything she had left. I had to it for her, and no matter what got in my way; I wasn't going to give up. Slowly taking a step forward, I could feel my courage very, _very _steadily building up. After I had taken quite a few steps into the forest and down the dirt path, it didn't seem that scary.

That was, before I heard a rustling in the bushes.

My eyes widened and I quickly darted off as far away as I could from the bush, but even then I could hear the thing coming after me. Fear and adrenaline rushed through me as I begged my legs to go faster. Gee, I had made it four steps in and I was already running for my life. I hadn't even thought of looking back to see what was actually chasing me, I had just told myself to run and so I did. For all I knew I could have been being chased by a squirrel, but my mind decided to let me imagine some sort of horrible creature with gigantic claws and fangs…

I hadn't been running for very long, 5 minutes at the most, but the way my legs felt made it feel like I had been running for hours. My breathing was heavy as I continued to run down the forest and my lungs were practically aching. _'Why am I pushing myself so hard for something that could be completely harmless?' _I thought as I continued to run. Unfortunately, while I was thinking to myself, I didn't look where I was going and tripped over a tree root and fell flat on my stomach.

I groaned in pain as I tried to prop myself up on my elbows, but my exhausted muscles wouldn't allow me to get up. I shut my eyes tightly as I heard the creature walk up to me; I didn't dare to look at it. 10 seconds passed, soon 15, then 20. I waited for the creature to strike, but after about 3 minutes of absolute silence, I figured it must've left. I slowly opened my eyes and lifted my head, only to be greeted by a white cat with light brown eyes sitting in front of me.

I blinked.

A cat was following me? _A __cat?_

The feline mewled softly, tilting its head to the right and watching my confused expression. It stood up onto all fours and came closer to me, putting its little wet nose close to my own nose. "Uh… N-Nice kitty…" I said quietly. Even if it was just a cat, I wasn't going to provoke it. The cat stared at me, thus I stared back. It stayed like that for another few minutes, just the both of us staring at each other in complete silence. At last I finally sat up, never breaking eye contact with the white furred feline. I could feel my anxiety going away. It was just a harmless cat! Well, it could have rabies, but the possibility of that was far off… I slowly extended my hand out to pet it, lightly brushing my fingers against the fur on the top of its head. The cat watched my fingers as I began to pet it, and its little ears twitched as I did so. I smiled, patting its small head carefully. "Aw, you're a cute little kitten…"

"I'm not cute." The cat suddenly spoke in a deep voice with a definite British accent like mine.

I instantly stopped petting it and stared at it in awe, my eyes as wide as they could be. "Did… Did you just…" I stammered, trying my best not freak out. "Did I just talk?" It spoke again, looking up at me while cocking its head to the side. "Yes, I did." It grinned, revealing its feline-like teeth and sharp canines.

I screamed.

Yes, even after telling myself to stay calm, I simply couldn't. So I screamed.

"A-Ahhh!" I shrieked loudly, making the cat jump and look up at me with its own wide eyes. "What the- how is that even possible?!" I scrambled away from it; my chest was rising up and down quickly from the shock. The cat mewled and shook his head, then came closer, causing me to go back more.

"What? Never seen a talking cat before?" It said mockingly.

"I will gladly inform you I have not!" I replied curtly to his quite obvious sarcasm.

"Well even then why are you freaking out so badly?" he sat down and began to lick his paw calmly.

"Because you're a _talking cat!"_ I said with a huff, starting to feel more enraged at his attitude than anything else.

"Hey, hey, hey, not _just _a talking cat." He looked up at me. I swore if cats could smirk he would be doing so. Just then those light brown eyes of his began to glow a bright blue. It was so bright that I had to shield my eyes from the blinding light. After the light had vanished, I uncovered my eyes only to nearly scream again.

Standing before me now was no longer a cat, but a young man who looked to be around the age 17. He was wearing commoners' clothes, but they looked new and comfortable. He had long, white hair that looked almost identical to mine, but his was more chaotic and spiky while mine was neater and well-kept. His eyes were a deep, dark brown, and I almost felt an unnerving feeling when he looked at me. He was about a foot taller than me, lean, and fit, like a cat. He actually quite resembled a cat, and the two hair spikes sitting on the top of his head made his cat-like appearance impeccable.

"I'm Bakura," He said with a small smirk on his face, "talking cat AND human." He chuckled almost in a mocking way.

I stood up after I was able to put everything together in my mind. So he wasn't a talking cat, just a human that could take the form of a cat and speak. It made perfect sense. That is, if I was in a mental hospital.

"Okay…" I looked at him suspiciously. If he was able to turn into a cat, who knows what else he could do. "So… Bakura… What do you want with me?" I sounded more distrustful than I intended. But Bakura seemed to let it go and simply shrug, paying more attention to fixing his clothing than answering my question.

"What do I want?" he repeated, finally looking back up at me. "I don't want anything at all. Maybe some companionship, I suppose. Like… a friend." He glanced at my map. I was about to agree to become his friends, but once again he cut me off. I was beginning to get annoyed since everyone always did that to me…

"What's that?" He questioned, walking over and taking the map out of my hands without even asking.

I sighed, knowing there was no point in arguing, so I just willingly explained. "My mother is seriously ill and the medic told me to find this Magia flower. He said it would heal her, but I had to go and find it. So he gave me this map." I looked up at him. He was busy examining the map, nodding his head slightly as his eyes scanned the paper.

"A magical flower… Huh... Sounds like a bunch of nonsense to me." He shrugged and handed me back the map, helping me pick up my backpack. I glared at him, opening my mouth to argue about how a magical flower is a bunch of nonsense but a human that can turn into a talking cat isn't?

I closed my mouth, deciding it was better to leave it be. "Do you want to come along? I suppose it is better if I go with a friend rather than by myself. Safer too." I smiled at him, which he responded to with another small shrug and a small grin.

"Yeah, I see why not… cream puff…" He laughed and ruffled my hair. I pouted and swatted at his hand, then proceeded to fix my hair and continue dwalking along the path. Bakura walked at my side, glancing around at all our surroundings every now and then. I took a deep breath and felt myself relax a little. At least now I had someone with me. And I'd like to think that we **both **make it back in one piece…

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**There you go! Hehe, Fluffy's really living up to his name now! XD "We're off to see the Wizard, the**** wonderful Wizard of Oz…"**


	4. Psycho Of The Year

**Here's chapter 4! Now this chapter mainly revolves around Melvin, our well known and loved psychopath, so it's going to start out in Melvin's point of view unlike the usual Ryo-point-of-view story. X3 I changed the Rating to T for reasons which you will find out in this chapter. **

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh! or any of its characters, I only own the plot! Enjoy!**_

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**Melvin's POV**

I was always a madman at heart.

A psychopath, you could say.

Even when I was younger I had always had a thing for coming up with outrages ideas; ideas that would seem barbaric or extreme to some, thus resulting in me having a very lonely and antisocial childhood.

But I don't need anyone's pity.

I was perfectly fine on my own, I didn't need anyone else. My parents were never around, and when they were, they were always yelling insults back at each other and nearly strangling one another. I was never the center of attention, but it wasn't like I wanted attention anyways. I was practically invisible to them, nothing more but a worthless progeny.

Ironically, I liked it. And for 14 years it stayed like that, too.

We were not a wealthy family. We were barely a family at all, in fact. My mother worked as a maid for other wealthier families. Most of the time she would come home after a long day and complain about how our house was nothing compared to the mansions she cleaned, how polite the children were, or how loving the husband was to the wife. My father, on the other hand, didn't have a job at all. Yet he always managed to stay out of the house all day long and come back at ungodly hours, drunk as usual. Since he had no job, he was always using the money my mother had earned. For quite some time she didn't know, only I had known his little secret, but she soon found out and became enraged.

My mother had been home all day that time, and I stayed in the corner of the living room, drawing pointless doodles in my notebook. Neither my mother nor my father ever talked to me, only if they needed me to do some sort of errand or if they were scolding me for doing something I wasn't supposed to. And even though I was ignored for most of my life, they never abused me. It was late at night, and like always, he stumbled in through the door, holding a nearly empty bottle in his hand. I glanced up at my mother for a second only to see that she had finally had enough. I went back to my notebook as I heard their yelling. My mother's voice was stern and serious while my father's words slurred but held an annoyed tone. I told myself not to watch, only to listen. Until I heard a loud crash followed by my mother's scream.

I looked up with wide eyes to see my father standing over her body, the glass was now shattered from the bottom and I could see blood speckled on the smooth surface. I stood up, holding my breath in hopes that my father wouldn't notice me now. I looked at my mother. She was lying on her side, her entire body limp and motionless. Drops of blood were running down the side of her blonde hair and onto the floor. He stood over her, his body swaying slightly from side to side due to the alcohol. I felt tears prickling at my eyes as I watched the man I had known as my father stand over his victim. I must have whimpered, for the next thing I knew he was looking over at me with his dark eyes, a scowl imprinted on his lips. I was already at the corner of the room; there was no way I was going to be able to get away from him.

Neither of us said a word, but he started to come closer, his shoulders drooping and his breathing was uneven and ragged. I watched as he edged closer and closer to me, and I could feel my heart racing inside my chest. My back was already to the wall and there was virtually nothing I could now. He grunted as he swung at me with the shattered bottle, my hands instinctively coming up to stop the bottle mere inches from my face. I used all my strength to keep the bottle from touching me while my father used his remaining strength to push the bottle closer and closer to me. I grasped the bottle tightly, digging my nails into his hand to see if he would let go, but with no avail. At last I was able to turn the bottle completely around so the deadly shards of the bottle were pointed right at his chest.

I looked up at my father's face as we both struggled for control of the bottle, but his drunken state had already worn him out. His eyes locked with mine, and for the first time I had seen the darkness in his eyes, the pure hatred. I had been warned before by many that my father was a cruel and heartless man. Some even told me I possessed the same darkness and that if I didn't watch myself, I would be headed down that same path. And at that moment, that critical moment of both my father and I fighting for control;

I snapped.

And that madness that had been manifesting inside of me for over the past years consumed me. It swallowed me whole as I jabbed the bottle straight into my father's chest, watching as his eyes grew wide with horror and mine shine with hatred. I grasped the bottle tighter and shoved it in further, causing him to fall onto his back and cough up blood. I could feel the adrenaline rushing through my veins, making me feel alive and powerful. I pressed my knee against his chest and put extra pressure on the bottle, making sure it tore through his heart. My chest was rising up and down, my heart and mind both racing. But just like he had stood over my mother's lifeless body, I stood over his. I stood there with a maniacal grin spread across my lips and a dark laugh managing to escape my throat.

It's like I had said before: I was _always _a madman at heart.

* * *

I sat at a bar by myself, watching as mostly men came in and sat themselves down to enjoy some refreshments. I had never drunk alcohol in my life and I vowed I never would after witnessing my mother die because of the accursed brew. So I simply sat on my chair, observing the people all around me.

After the incident with my father, that darkness inside of me never died down. I actually like to think it grew, now that I mention it. I left my parents' home after gathering some supplies and went off on my own, living in the shady areas of the village near the palace. There I got myself a "reputation" and got myself into quite some trouble over the years. At age 17 I was caught by the royal guard and put into the prison on account for various murders. But I soon escaped from their poorly guarded prison, but I knew well that they would be after me. The prince couldn't have a psychopathic killer running around his kingdom, for if he did, the people of his beloved village would panic. The thought of that always made me chuckle, just imagining the people breaking out into chaos and the prince being blamed for it made me laugh. But 3 years passed, and now at the age of 20, my murderous desires had quieted down.

Killing carelessly was a risk, and that wasn't something I could afford. And while I do admit that the rush was exhilarating, it also brought too much attention towards me. So I stayed low, only allowing myself to execute anyone only if it was necessary.

I could tell some of the people sitting around me recognized who I was for I could feel their harsh stares all locked on me. My appearance was quite distinguishable, so it wasn't much of a surprise that they could tell I was an infamous criminal. I laughed quietly to myself, taking out one of my daggers and lightly running my thumb across the flat side of the blade. I was starting to get bored with watching all the typical thieves and criminals, when I glanced up to see two newcomers enter the establishment, both of them looking nothing like the rest of the thugs that entered here. I watched them closely as they both took a seat in one of the booths. They both had long white hair, brown eyes, and pale skin, but one appeared much softer and smaller while the other seemed more smug and well-built compared to the other. I assumed they were twins, but twins with very different personalities. Though they didn't look like much, it was definitely different than watching a bunch of brutes get drunk.

**Ryo's POV**

After walking for an hour or so, Bakura suggested we take a break in this small restaurant. As soon as we walked in I felt the uncomfortable sensation that we were being watched, but by the looks of the place, it wouldn't be a surprise if some creep was watching us. Bakura had ordered some food for us so that we would be ready to head on our way, so while we were waiting for our food, I took the liberty to look around at everyone who was in here. "Hey… Do feel like we're being watched?" I said in a quiet voice to Bakura. He looked up at me and shrugged, then went back to examining the map. He had been asking me the whole way here if he could take another look at it, and after the excruciating 60 minutes of him continuously nagging me, I finally said yes.

"Well hello there," a deep voice made me look up. My eyes widened when I saw a tall man with gravity defying blonde hair and a maniacal grin towering over us, "is it alright if I sit with the two of you?"

* * *

**There you guys have it! I hope I didn't make Melvin's back story too graphic/severe… but… every madman has a story ;3 And I'm going to try to finish up my other story, so please be patient! I highly appreciate it. Thank you!**


	5. Gate At Seiya

**CHAPTER 5 IS HERE. **

**I want to start by giving a huge thanks to those of you that reviewed! One person being naynaynaynay and the other I do not know by name, but thank you so much for your positive reviews! You guys are awesome X3**

**So how many more people do you think Ryo and Bakura will meet along the way?... Don't worry, you'll find out soon enough here in the upcoming chapters! **

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh! or any of its characters! Enjoy!**_

* * *

_- "Well hello there," a deep voice made me look up. My eyes widened when I saw a tall man with gravity defying blonde hair and a maniacal grin towering over us, "is it alright if I sit with the two of you?" -_

**Ryo's POV**

I stared up at him with wide eyes, unable to say anything due to the fact that I was slightly horrified by his shady appearance. Who was he and exactly why did he want to sit with us? Did he know about the flower? Did he want the map? Did he want to murder us?...

"Yeah, sure, go ahead." Bakura said with a shrug, still looking over the map. He didn't even glance up at the guy but yet he let him sit with us. The stranger nodded as that creepy smile stayed plastered on his face, then he sat down next to Bakura.

'_He wants the map…' _I thought to myself, watching him nervously. Bakura, on the other hand, seemed perfectly fine about a complete stranger sitting with us. He finished looking over the map, handed it back to me, then looked up at our new guest with a grin.

We all sat there in complete silence for a few moments, Bakura nonchalantly looking around, our new guest watching the two of us, and myself sitting there in a frightened and nervous state. Our waiter finally arrived with our food, and I looked up to see a large, muscular man carrying our food. He had tattoos all over his arms and near his collar bone, some running up his neck. He wore a sleeveless white shirt that clearly showed off his muscles. He set down our food on the table with a scowl, roughly slamming down my plate in front of me and causing me to squeak. _'Is everyone in this place a thug?_...' I thought to myself, quickly looking down at my hands.

Bakura licked his lips, eagerly grabbing his utensils and quickly starting to devour his food. I watched him for a few seconds before glancing down at my own food. I had let Bakura order for the both of us, which I quickly realized that was a mistake for I couldn't quite tell what was in front of me. "Would y-you like some, sir?..." I asked our new guest, smiling nervously.

"Oh, no, that's alright." He looked at me with that maniacal smile, us making eye contact for the first time. I felt like he was peering into my soul, which I understand is an exaggeration, but I felt totally uncomfortable when he looked at me. "But…" he continued, glancing over at Bakura, then back up at me, "I was wondering what the two of you were doing here? I come here quite often, and you two don't look like the usual patrons that come around here…" he spoke as he motioned to the waiter that had brought our food over, who also doubled as the chef and was in the middle of hacking up a piece of meat with a butchers knife.

I looked over at the man and gulped, hoping that he would stay very far away from us with that knife. "Well…" I started, unsure of whether I should tell a stranger of our plan, "m-my mother is very ill… and… my friend and I are going to find this flower that could help heal here…" I explained, holding out the map to him. He took the map out of my hand and began to look at it, scanning over it with his dark purple eyes.

"Hm." He hummed, spreading the out the map flat on the table. "Interesting… I recognize most of these land features. I have even traveled to a few. This flower is supposedly here," He pointed to the top right corner of the map. It had a small picture of the Magia flower drawn on top of a drawing of a jungle. I stopped myself when I thought I heard him say "supposedly" but he continued to talk, "and we are here," he then pointed near the bottom left corner, where the forest was drawn. "I would gladly assist you in your journey…" He looked up at me, a smug smirk tugging at his lips, "if you give me something in return."

I saw Bakura turn and look at him curiously, then look at me. I stayed still as they both stared me down, one waiting for a deal and the other waiting for an explanation.

And I had no answer for either.

* * *

"Since we're stuck with each other for the rest of this trip, why don't we get to know each other?" Bakura suggested. Bakura, our new guest, and I were walking down the forest path, on our way to our next "checkpoint", which happened to be another small village. "I'll start." He grinned, kicking a small stone as he walked.

"My name is Bakura Touzoku, I am 17 years old, and I am a magical creature that can shape-shift into a cat." He looked at me and smirked, obviously referring back to when we first met. I rolled my eyes at him, but he just chuckled and continued. "Some of the things I like are the color red, cats, steak and really any other type of meat, anything horror related, sharp objects, and blood." He said with a wicked grin, making me look at him uneasily, but our guest merely listened. "I don't really enjoy talking about my past… But I guess it doesn't hurt." He shrugged, clearing his throat and getting ready to speak. "I was born and raised in a small village much like the one cream puff over here comes from, no siblings, just my mother, my father, and me. My father came from a long line of shape-shifters, while my mother and her side of the family were all human. When they had me, I was born with the ability to turn into a cat, but nothing else. Why? Don't ask me, I was just born that way. Anyways, when I was around the age of 8, a tribe of trolls came into our village and destroyed everything and everyone. Well, everyone except for me, of course. So after those filthy trolls came and took everything away from me, I vowed to obliterate any troll that ever came into my path." He growled, clenching his fists tightly, then soon released them and relaxed a little. "I've been living on my own ever since then, just roaming around this forest. But now, I actually have something to do!" Bakura laughed, looking over at our guest and I.

My eyes were wide from the shock that he had watched his family and village get destroyed by trolls, but our guest didn't even seemed fazed by it. I figured nothing of it; he was most likely a murderer himself…

"Blondie, your turn." Bakura smiled sweetly, brushing a leave off his shoulder.

"Oh, my turn?" The lavender eyed stranger smiled wickedly. "Alright. My name is Melvin Ishtar, and I'm 20 years old. I wouldn't be surprised if you knew who I was, I am an infamous psychopathic murderer." He chuckled. I looked up at him and I could feel all the color drain from my face. I just _knew_ he was a criminal! But now that the thought was confirmed, I couldn't just tell him to get lost. Who knew what he'd do to me then… "I don't have too many favorite things. I like weapons, torture methods, blood and gore, fire…" He smiled psychotically at the mention of fire, causing me to move a little bit away from him.

Great, a psychopath who was also a pyromaniac. Just what we needed.

"I don't like talking about my past or my childhood, but all I can say is that it wasn't a good one." He said with a dark and serious tone. I watched as his whole demeanor changed from psychotic to dark and grim. The usual maniacal gleam in his eyes was now shining with pure hatred, something that I had seen before around the area of the village. I was tempted to comfort both him and Bakura, but I didn't actually know how…

So instead I softly cleared my throat and began to talk about myself. "U-um... Well… I'm Ryo Bakura and I'm 16 years old… I live alone with my mother, who at the moment is very sick. That's mainly why I need the flower, so I can heal her… Um… My father disappeared when I was little, and I've never heard of him since then. It's up to me to take care of both my mother and I, but we aren't the wealthiest people, so that's hard to do once in a while…" I stopped for a second to see what both of them were doing, and I was actually surprised to see that they were both listening, so I continued. "I like rabbits, and the color blue, and my favorite snack are cream puffs." I finished off with a smile.

I was actually a little bit more relaxed now that we had gotten to know each other better; it gave me a sense that we might just be able to pull this whole journey off without dying. That was something I definitely did not want happening.

"Uh, hello?" Bakura brought me out of my thoughts, and apparently Melvin's as well for he turned and looked at Bakura confusedly. "What are we going to do about _**that**_?" He pointed up a large wooden gate. The gate looked to be 80 feet tall (more or less) and there was stone on either sides of it that appeared to wrap around the entire village. Melvin took out the map from my backpack and unfolded it, examining to see exactly where we were.

"This, my friends, is the city of Seiya," he said with a smug smile that looked more like a smirk, "which means we have reached our next checkpoint."

* * *

**Oh wow, I did not realize that it had been almost a month since I had updated this… Sorry! And in the next chapter we have a character that I will clear up soon because I can just tell it might be a little confusing… but until the next chapter! I'm not giving any spoilers XD**

**Hehe, has anyone noticed something about the city's name?... I just thought it'd be fun to add, and I'm curious to see how many of you understand it... (without looking it up! no cheating! X3) **

**Later guys!**


	6. Thief In The Shadows

**Woo! Next Chapter! **

**I want to give a HUGE thanks to Not-A-Randomer for reviewing! All of your reviews are really amazing and thank you SOOO much for following along!**

**Thank you to everyone else that is following along with this story!**

**Now to clear some things up before we go on…**

**I mentioned in a previous chapter a couple of the characters, and I want to recall one of them which will be introduced in the chapter. I am not positive what the official name for Past Thief King Bakura is, I have heard/read many different variations, but I call him "King Thief". (Why? It's just easy to remember and it sticks. I'm not saying it's canon or headcanon, but **_**IT'S JUST A NICKNAME, NOT AN ACTUAL NAME**_**) So if you see anyone named King Thief, it is the past version of Bakura, the one from ancient Egypt. Yami Bakura is just regular Bakura (the one that can turn into a cat).**

**The only reason I did that was because 1) it would be way more confusing if there were 2 Bakura's and 2) I have no idea what the canon/headcanon name for him is, so a nickname just seemed easier to use. **

**PLEASE DON'T HATE ME BECAUSE OF THAT.**

**I think that's all for now… PM if you have any further questions!**

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh! or any of its characters, this is only for fun! Enjoy!**_

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**Bakura's POV**

The city of what?

I didn't really care where we had to go, as long as it got us to that magic flower.

I had heard of it plenty of times before, villages knew about it, and even those disgusting trolls knew about it as well. They say that it was the ability to heal anything, from illnesses to wounds. I had also heard that the flower could reproduce eternally, so even if you used it once, as long as you had a seed from it, you could easily grow another one. But I know what you're thinking, why not grow an entire field of them and end suffering? Because there could only be one flower blooming at a time.

Ryo said once he got the flower, he was going to turn it into a potion for his mother, but he had also agreed to share part of the potion with me as well. Who wouldn't want part of a magical healing potion?

So I knew why I was tagging along, but why was Melvin?...

**Ryo's POV**

Okay, so maybe this gate was going to be a small setback… but nothing we couldn't get through, right?

We were all sitting in front of the gate; Melvin was trying to figure out a way to get inside the gate while Bakura and I were relaxing. I looked up at the sky to see that the sun was already setting. It was getting late, and soon it would be too dark for us to do anything. I had suggested getting someone's attention from inside, and maybe they would let us in, but Bakura brought up the point that they most likely wouldn't let a criminal in. Melvin said that we could climb over the gate and the stone wall, but knowing my physical strength, there was no way I was going to be able to climb a rope that high.

"We could disguise ourselves as merchants." Melvin said, leaning back against a tree and putting his arms behind his head. "A village needs merchants. They couldn't just turn us down."

"We would need a clever disguise, though…" I was the next to speak. We all sat there quietly, trying to think of a fool-proof disguise. Just then, a wicked smile spread across Bakura's face.

"I've got an idea…"

* * *

"I am not happy with this idea…" I pouted as we stood in front of the gate. Bakura's "clever idea" of a disguise was for Melvin to cover his face with his cloak and for me to be the thing he was selling. I now wore a cuff around my neck which was connected to chain link. I also had to wear a pair of handcuffs around my wrists, in order to make it look more realistic. Melvin held the other end of the link, and Bakura sat on Melvin's shoulder while being in cat form.

"Don't worry, as soon as we make it out of the city, I'll unlock the chains." Melvin said, reaching up and pushing the door slightly open.

"May I ask why you had these in the first place?" I whispered curiously. I did find it odd that he just happened to have these…

"You never know when they'll come in handy for torture." He answered me with that psychotic smile. My eyes widened slightly at his response, but yet somehow that answer didn't surprise me too much considering it was coming from him.

Melvin opened the door more and stepped inside the village. The inside of the village actually looked worse than it did on the outside. The village itself was made up of several houses and shops, the streets in between them filled with benders and their consumers. Much like the market in my town, the merchants all looked shady and untrustworthy, even though some were selling necessities like food and clothing. Most of the light was coming from the houses and small lanterns the merchants had hanging from their stands, but even then it was kind of hard to see now that the sun had gone down past the horizon.

"Well that was simple." Bakura said, looking around to see if there were any sign of guards. There were two guards, actually. One was sitting one side of the gate and another one was on the opposite side, but both were fast asleep with what appeared to be empty beer bottles in their hands.

I heard Melvin mutter something about the guards, but I don't wish to repeat any of those things out loud.

"C'mon, let's make our way through this town. The sooner we leave the more time we have to rest and continue our journey." Melvin spoke loudly this time. Both him and I started to walk, making our way past the enormous crowd of people. I was surprised everyone could actually fit in the small space that made up the market, but then again, people will do anything to survive, even if it means killing. I noticed the town didn't look too friendly, judging by some of the nasty stares that some of the people gave us. Yet Melvin and Bakura didn't even bother returning the looks, instead Melvin was focused on finding a way out and Bakura was merely enjoying the view from his comfortable spot. Meanwhile I was the one stuck in the chains and being forced to be dragged around.

We finally made it out of the crowded street and into an emptier, yet creepier, alleyway. I peered into it cautiously, and confirmed that it was definitely not somewhere I would like to go, but Melvin had other plans.

"We'll go through here," He said, pulling me along, "it'll be less crowded and it's a faster route."

I bit my lower lip in anxiousness when we started making our way through that dark alley. I felt something odd about it, something that just didn't seem right… It sort of felt like when I first didn't know Bakura was the one following me…

**King Thief's POV**

I watched as 3 new people entered the alley I was hiding in, but like everyone else, I knew they wouldn't find me. As the King of Thieves, it was important to always stay hidden. If you weren't, there was always the possibility of someone capturing you or killing you, both I did _not _want happening.

From what I could see, all I could tell was there was one large man with a white cat on his shoulder and a young boy in chains being dragged around by the man. I scowled at them as they walked by, mainly at the man dragging the young boy. Seeing them brought back unwanted memories from my childhood, some which I thought I had suppressed years ago.

Back when I was younger, my mother and I were kidnapped by a gang of unruly and highly dangerous criminals. There, both of us were held as prisoners, my mom used for cleaning and other things the men wanted her to do while I was simply used as slave. They were the ones who taught me how to steal, how to be stealthy, and how to never get caught. I suppose it was thanks to them that I had become the King of Thieves. But it was also thanks to them that I hadn't seen my own mother for 12, and it was their fault that I had several scars, both physical and mental, including the scar running down from my right eye.

"Heartless monster…" I murmured quietly to myself, watching from the shadows as they made their way down the alleyway. Just because I was a thief didn't mean I couldn't do _some_ good. And it was only so that poor boy didn't have to go through what I did.

So it was set.

I would free the boy and then be on my way.

With a little fun and stealing mixed in there as well.

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**Well this doesn't usually happen… and by that I mean I don't usually update two days in a row. It's a miracle!**

**Until next time! :D**


	7. The More The Merrier

**Time for the King of Thieves grand plan to roll out XD**

**Thanks to Not-A-Randomer for reviewing, (you're like my #1 fan!) and also thanks to anyone else who is reading this story!**

**I don't have too much to say… So enjoy!**

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh! or any of its characters! R&R**_

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**Ryo's POV**

We continued to walk down the alley way, but it seemed like there was something following us… Something that was definitely much larger than me. Melvin was the tallest and more built one out of the three of us, Bakura being the second, and I being the third. I was a little bit relieved that both of them were strong, but if someone were to attack us, would the two of them really protect me?

I chose to believe they would, but that nagging little feeling didn't disappear entirely.

Melvin pulled down his hood and looked down at me. I guess he sensed I was feeling a bit anxious. "You alright, kid?" he asked, allowing the chain to swing a bit so it wouldn't strangle me.

"I don't know…" I replied, looking around nervously, "I feel like there's someone- or something- watching us… But I'm probably just paranoid." I looked up at him and smiled shyly.

"Just relax," Bakura reassured me, giving me a little feline grin, "there's no one watching us, it's just an empty alley-" he was cut off when something large ran up and knocked Melvin off his feet, causing Bakura to fly off his shoulder and land on the ground with a painful _thud _while Melvin and I both landed face down on the ground. I didn't see what had knocked us down, but I didn't need to, for it was standing right over me.

"Quickly! Get up!" they pulled me up while holding my forearm. I was still in shock from our sudden collapse and didn't have time to respond, but I did see what- or I should say who- had caused us to fall. It was a man who appeared to be in his 20's, like Melvin, but even he wasn't as large as our blonde friend. I noticed he had short, shaggy white hair that was just a tad dirty, bronze skin and gray-ish blue eyes. He wore a red robe and shorts, and he had many golden necklaces and rings. I had seen others like him; not in his appearance, but in what he had. Many people near my home had expensive trinkets and jewelry, but yet didn't fit in with the wealthier population.

So I concluded: he was a thief.

My brain decided to actually start functioning correctly and I was able to escape his grasp, only to stumble backwards and land right in a puddle.

"What are you doing idiot?!" he growled in frustration and ran back over to me, lifting me up in the air and putting me over his shoulder.

"W-Wait sir! I think y-you're misunderstanding!" I squirmed around in his arms but he had a much stronger grip than I imagined. "I-I'm with them!" I continued to yell, yet the thief wouldn't slow down. I started to panic inside, and out of instinct I pounded my fists against his back. I knew it wouldn't even hurt him considering I barely have any muscles, but it was worth a try. "Let go of me, THEY'RE MY FRIENDS!" I yelled as loudly as I could. He finally stopped and cringed at my slightly high pitched scream, setting me down on the ground (though it was more of a drop).

"Geez, alright! Alright!" He furrowed his brow, still cringing a bit from my screech. "What are you doing with them? I thought they were holding you as a slave!"

I mentally blamed Bakura for this entire scenario, but I would deal with him later. At the moment I needed to explain a few things to my kidnapper. "No, this is just some disguise…" I started, holding up my arms to show him the handcuffs, "I'm not a slave, and my friends over there aren't slave owners." I ended with a quick nod.

The thief looked at me in confusion, then his expression changed to slightly annoyed. I felt my face begin to grow hot from the embarrassment. It was bad enough we were doing it and people were just giving us nasty looks, but making someone actually believe enough to try and save me made it even worse.

"I'm r-really sorry…" I said shyly, shamefully looking down at my chained hands.

I heard him sigh, "Don't apologize," He said with a softer tone, "if you made me believe it, then all I can say is that's a very realistic disguise." He laughed. I smiled slightly at his reassuring comment, then looked up at him and smiled genuinely.

"Give us back our cream puff!" I heard Bakura yell before seeing him (in human form) leap onto the thief's back and grab his head into a choke hold. Melvin simply walked over and stood next to me, watching as the two of them struggled against each other, Bakura clinging to his back and the thief attempting to pry Bakura off.

"Bakura! Stop that!" I furrowed my brow and reached out, pulling Bakura off of him. "He didn't hurt me!"

"He might have not hurt you, but I'll definitely hurt him!" he tried to leap over but I somehow managed to keep him back.

Melvin rolled his eyes at our little scene, and I was close to smacking some sense into Bakura, but the thief did it before I could.

"Calm down, I don't mean any trouble!" He frowned and Bakura pouted, rubbing his head where he had gotten hit. "It was a misunderstanding, and I apologize."

The alley way grew silent after he had said "I apologize" and the three of us looked up at him with wide eyes and mouths slightly ajar in shock.

"Hold on, why are YOU apologizing?" Melvin asked suspiciously, raising an eyebrow at the thief's comment.

"Because," he started, "it's too late for me to run away now. As a thief, I would usually either kill my victims, or kidnap them to keep them quiet. But since all of you are still alive and you outnumber me, I would like to make peace with you. Mainly so you don't turn me in…" He mumbled the last sentence quickly and quietly, but we all heard it.

The silence once again took over for a few minutes before Bakura finally turned to Melvin and I and whispered. "Maybe he could come in handy…"

"You be quiet!" I whispered back, even though it was hardly a whisper, "you and your silly ideas are what got us in this kidnapping mess in the first place!"

"I hate to admit it," Melvin joined in, "but Bakura may have a point. While I am used to stealing things, I'm not the most suitable person for thievery. I'm too large to sneak around."

"I'm pretty good at sneaking around," Bakura whispered, looking up at the two of us, "I'm quiet and agile, and I can get around security easily."

Melvin chuckled, "Yes, but with your focusing skills, you'd probably get distracted by something more appealing towards you than our actual target." He laughed mockingly, causing Bakura to punch his arm.

"Alright, quit it, you two," I said with a small sigh, "I suppose he could be essential to our journey…"

"What type of journey is this, if you don't mind me asking?" the thief spoke to the three of us. _'So much for whispering…' _I thought to myself.

"We're… um… after a magical flower…" I explained, "and we were wondering if you would like to join us?..." I smiled sheepishly and waited for his response.

We watched as his questioning look turned into a wicked grin. "Magical flower huh?" he laughed, but I couldn't tell if he was laughing at the thought of a magical flower or the thought of teaming up with us, "Well in that case, you can count the King of Thieves in."


	8. On With The Journey

**Hello again everyone! Time for chapter 8!**

**There's about… 2 or 3 more characters that I wanna add to Ryo's little adventure group, so about 2 or 3 of the chapters are going to be about them, but the rest are them on their adventure! I do not know how many exact chapters I'm going to have, but I know it will definitely be over 10 chapters. :) **

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh! or any of its characters! Enjoy!**_

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**Ryo's POV**

After we had everything settled out, the thief, or "King Thief", showed us an easier way out of the city. The route consisted of walking down various streets, but many people were indoors, so we didn't have to worry about any more newcomers. For now, I hoped. After about an hour of walking, we finally made it to the other end of the town, where the two stone walls met again with another large wooden gate in between them.

"Can't we just push this door open like the other one?" Bakura asked, he was back in cat form and sitting on my shoulder this time.

"No," King Thief replied, "this door has been closed for years. No one's been able to open it." he looked at us, and we all looked back at him.

"We can't just stop here!" I said, sounding a little more desperate than I intended to, "can't we climb it or knock it down or anything?" I said, looking around at everyone.

Just then, that same maniacal grin that had been on Melvin's face back at the restaurant reappeared on his lips. "I have an idea…" he said with a low and ominous laughter, a psychotic gleam in his eyes.

* * *

"Um… Is this even legal?..." I asked Melvin, fully knowing that is was definitely _not_ legal. We were still standing in front of the gate, but now Melvin was holding an armful of dynamite sticks while King Thief and Bakura were setting up a miniature shelter so we wouldn't get blown to bits.

"Do you want to get out safely or do you want to get out in style?" He said with a maniacal smile, dropping the dynamite in front of the gate. "Don't answer that." He said shortly afterwards, so I slowly closed my mouth.

"The shelter is all set up!" King Thief yelled over at us. The shelter they had built wasn't as large as I hoped it would be, but we didn't have the time to rebuild it. I really, really, _really _hoped it would allow us to survive…

"Get in there, squirt." Melvin shoved me behind the shelter along with Bakura and King Thief. I took a deep breath; trying not think about all the things that could go wrong and how badly it would hurt getting flung across the street by an explosion would feel like… But by the looks of it, I wasn't doing a very good job at not thinking about all those things. I watched as Melvin ran over and then squat down behind the shelter so he was protected but could still see the explosion. I could see that psychotic gleam in his eyes as the fuse edged closer and closer to the sticks of dynamite. I covered my ears so the deafening explosion wouldn't blast my ears out when suddenly…

_**BOOM!**_

Huge and small chunks of wood went flying everywhere, some of the smaller pieces landing on top of us and in our hair while the larger ones went soaring into the air and then landed with a loud _clunk_ on the ground. I glanced up at Melvin to see with smiling broadly like a child on Christmas morning before he let out a rather maniacal laughter, which changed the image to his much more suitable murderer appearance.

"No time to waste! On your feet people, let's go!" Bakura hurried us all onto the path now in front of us where the gate would have usually been, but was now lying on the ground in thousands of pieces. Surely someone had heard the loud explosion, but from what I had seen, the town people probably didn't care.

"Where to next?" King Thief asked, looking over my shoulder as I unfolded the map. The map showed the city of Seiya, the path we were taking, and a mountain with what appeared to be a dragon circling around it. I looked up to see that they were all waiting for an answer, so I pointed up at the huge mountain that we were approaching.

"I believe we have to go through there…"

**Bakura's POV**

I yawned as we continued to walk down the path, my eyelids felt heavy and my feet were beginning to hurt. I hadn't slept since I had joined in on this little adventure, but I don't think I was the only one. The cream puff looked to be the most worn out. He was having a hard time keeping his eyes open and kept shaking his head, as if to wake himself up or something.

King Thief was doing alright, yawning was the only thing that pointed out that he was tired. Then there was Melvin, who, to my surprise, didn't seem fatigued at all. He always walked with his shoulders set straight and with perfect posture; something you wouldn't typically see in a murderer and/or thief. Though I did notice he kept scanning our surroundings with his dark lavender eyes. Looking at them gave me chills, and my eyes were even darker than his! Something didn't add up with him, but I chose to ignore it. I mean, it was him who has helped us the most this far in the journey.

Yet I couldn't help but feel there was something he wasn't telling us… Some sort of a secret he was keeping from us. My first thought was the reason he was coming along with us. His reason seemed too plain, too unrealistic for a criminal.

_"I would gladly assist you in your journey…" He looked up at Ryo, a smug smirk tugging at his lips, "if you give me something in return."_

_I turned and looked at Ryo curiously. What could he want? And would Ryo comply? Melvin and I kept quiet while we waited for Ryo to reply, but the kid kept his mouth closed. Finally, the cream puff spoke up quietly._

"_What is it that you want in return?" his voice held an unsure tone. He wanted to deny, it was easy to tell, but denying someone like Melvin could put Ryo at risk. He didn't know what this man was capable of, but he had a small idea, and that idea made him scared. Typical, I would've said, but if I was in his spot, I couldn't argue that I wouldn't have done the same. _

"_I'd like a petal." The man said, a sweet yet sinister smile playing at his lips. _

"_A… petal?" Ryo said in confusion, "Wouldn't you prefer part of the potion? That's what Bakura's getting…"_

"_No," Melvin repeated himself again, "just a petal. Not anything else."_

_Ryo seemed to be slightly more relieved at that moment, so now I was positive he would agree. Both him and myself would have concluded that a flower petal was a small price, and it wouldn't affect the potion at all._

"_Okay," Ryo said shyly and with a small smile, "you've got yourself a deal."_

When I had finally snapped back out of my thoughts, I looked up to see that we were standing at the base of the mountain.

"All in favor of resting here for the night?" Ryo said with an exhausted groan. Melvin, King Thief, and myself all raised our hands and muttered our tired replies. "Sounds good…" Ryo said again before collapsing against Melvin.

Melvin lifted Ryo's arm and let it drop, his arm falling back to his side limply. "Well, he's out for the night." He said while gently setting Ryo down on the ground and covered him with his cloak. I sat down and leaned against the rocky surface of the mountain, slowly closing my eyes and drifting off into a much needed slumber.


End file.
